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Stockholm team to KHL? (updated)

Sports | 2010-01-27
The ice hockey team AIK in Stockholm might be the first Swedish team that plays in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), with mainly Russian teams. A decision will be made by the club members tonight.

AIK is in a very bad financial shape and faces the risk for bancrupcy if nothing is done. They are currently in the second league of Swedish ice hockey but is still considered one of the big teams from an historical point of view. Even though they do have the chance to go up in Elitserien (the premier division) this year, the financial gap is huge and to establish themselves there, if they at all avoid bancrupcy, might be too difficult.

If they would join the KHL they would get new possibilities to finance their business. On the other hand, skeptics say that opposite teams that are not very well-known in Sweden would not attract as much audience as the teams with which AIK has built up rivality with throughout the years.

They will also have to leave Swedish ice hockey totally according to a decision yesterday by the Swedish ice hockey federation. It will not be possible for them to keep a team in the Swedish league at the same time as they play in KHL.

– To make Allsvenskan (the Swedish second league) a subordinate league to KHL is out of the question says the chairman for the Swedish Ice hockey Federation Christer Englund to the daily newspaper Dagens Nyheter.

The organisation for the Swedish elite clubs (of which AIK is not a part) decided a few days ago to stay in the Swedish league system for at least two more years. Discussions about a pan-European league or cooperation with KHL have also been going on.

Update: The members did decide to let the board of the club go on with the negotiations with KHL. KHL wants a definite answer from AIK by April
 

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